Gabi’s Speech and Drama Podcast

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit gabimaddocks.substack.com This week’s video is designed to support both teachers and students navigating Grade 6 Acting, Verse and Prose, or Speaking in Public, particularly when it comes to breathing techniques and voice production. It comes as the result of a question asked a training session this week: “But how do you actually teach...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit gabimaddocks.substack.com I’m very excited to share this with you because it genuinely exceeded my expectations. I haven’t done any proper work on voice since I was at drama school LAST CENTURY! And so all my vocal warm ups are tired and remembered quite hazily from long ago. I loved learning new exercises and an approach that will real...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit gabimaddocks.substack.com Our March Meet Up focused on teaching LAMDA in various settings, and we discussed different teaching environments and their challenges. We explored: * Teaching Online via Zoom/Google Meet: which subjects work best * The Challenges of Teaching in Students’ Homes: managing behaviour when the parent is in earshot!...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit gabimaddocks.substack.com I was teaching a Grade 5 Verse and Prose student on Monday, and he was struggling with suspensory pauses… as I was explaining what they are and how they work I found myself getting quite excited! They are my favourite pause, and do work magic in poetry. I wanted to share my enthusiasm for these curious little c...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit gabimaddocks.substack.com This meet up of Speech and Drama Teachers covers policies for matching LAMDA exam grades to appropriate ages, handling sensitive content in drama classes, and selecting suitable plays for students of different ages and maturity levels.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit gabimaddocks.substack.com Hi everyone - here’s the video of our October meet up for you to watch at your leisure… unfortunately my internet connection was not as strong as it usually is, so there are a couple of moments where I cut out… but it’s only a few seconds at a couple of points. Did you know that these videos are available as PO...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit gabimaddocks.substack.com For those who prefer to read rather than watch, here’s a summary of the meeting: Overview The meeting focused on discussing LAMDA's newly released additional set text options for Level 2 exams. We aired concerns about guidelines for original speech content. We had a look at the plays that are now on the ASTL wh...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit gabimaddocks.substack.com Meeting Overview Many students finish their LAMDA exams weeks before the end of term, leaving a teaching gap. In this meeting we explored ways of keeping sessions purposeful, engaging, and “un-cancellable” during this in-between time — especially for solo students or pairs. OPTION 1: If they’ve taken an exam ea...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit gabimaddocks.substack.com For those of you who don’t have 48 minutes spare to watch the whole video, here are the most important points covered at the meeting… Devising Drama: The Fundamentals Learners can take Solo exams or Duologue exams but there is NO COMBINED EXAM for Devising Drama * Learners must devise their own original scenes...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit gabimaddocks.substack.com Whether you’re brand new to them or looking to refresh your approach, this session will offer real, practical value. Here’s why you might want to watch the video: 1. Never tackled Introductory Exams before? You’ll get a clear breakdown of how they work, what examiners are looking for, and who they’re ideal for....

It’s just me this time… and it’s come out a bit later than I was hoping because of competition from other important activities! Setting up a new Facebook group with the wonderful Clare and Judi took up the second half of September, and there was also a bit of a hoo-hah about the Knowledge questions in the Grade 6 and 7 acting syllabus to look into… which still hasn’t been satisfactorily resolved....

In this podcast I have a lovely chat with the marvellous Abi Haberfield, who is a partner at The Playing Space and also teaches independently in schools. She is a hugely experienced LAMDA teacher, having prepared students for exams of all subjects and grades for more than 12 years. We talk about the variety of different set ups we have encountered in the different schools we go into. Areas of disc...

This is a fun conversation with a professional working actor, Jennie Eggleton, who also works as a speech and drama teacher, independently and as a partner of The Playing Space. We talk about the pros and cons of combining these two careers, and how everyone listening can enjoy the benefits whether or not they are currently a working actor. We also share some LAMDA Exam stories at the end of the p...

Here is the website for the The British and International Federation of Festivals for Music, Dance and Speech (BIFF): https://www.federationoffestivals.org.uk/festivals Click the link to find your local festival. Get the full episode and all future episodes by becoming a paid subscriber to my substack: www.gabimaddocks.substack.com This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other...